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Snowflake Cold

Emergency in Bulgaria's Smolyan district enters second day after heavy snowfall

snow
© Bulgarian Ministry of Defence
Twenty military personnel from Bulgaria's 101st Alpine Regiment were continuing to provide assistance to the population of the Smolyan district on January 27, the second day of a state of emergency in the region because of heavy snowfall.

Bulgaria's Defence Ministry said that the regiment resumed operations on Sunday morning to clea the road from Smolyan to the Prevala mountain pass, where the snow cover was about 60cm.

On January 26, the regiment assisted in clearing the road from the St Panteleimon monastery near Smolyan to the bus station in Bulgaria's Pamporovo ski resort. They retrieved stranded cars and cleared the roadway of snow and fallen trees.

On Saturday, Pamporovo was effectively cut off by the snow, while another of Bulgaria's major resorts, Bansko, the gondola lift was closed throughout the day. Conditions in Bansko were considerably better on Sunday.


Snowflake Cold

Icy blast reminds US forecasters of 2014 'polar vortex,' with the worst still to come

polar vortex wind chill winter
© Tyler LaRiviere/Chicago Sun-Times via Associated Press
Chicago's lakefront is frozen over Friday, Jan. 25, 2019. The National Weather Service had a wind chill warning in effect until 12 p.m. Friday for counties in northwestern and north central Illinois.
An arctic blast spread painful cold across the Midwest on Friday, closing schools, opening warming centers and even intimidating ice fishermen in a taste of the even more dangerous weather expected next week.

Forecasters called it a replay of the "polar vortex" that bludgeoned the U.S. in 2014 - and maybe even colder, with wind chills by midweek as much as 45 below in Chicago.

"We're going to be feeling it big time," Jeff Masters, meteorology director at the private Weather Underground, said. "It's going to be the coldest air in five years."

For much of middle America, the leading edge was bad enough. Cold weather advisories were in effect Friday from North Dakota to Ohio, with dangerously cold wind chills that could dip to as low as 45 below zero (negative 42 Celsius) in northern Wisconsin and Minnesota and to 35 below (negative 37 Celsius) in parts of northern Illinois and Iowa.

Snowflake Cold

Cold wave sweeps northwestern Tunisia - snow blocks 31 roads

Local authorities clear a road blocked by snowfall in Tunisia on January 25, 2019
© AFP
Local authorities clear a road blocked by snowfall in Tunisia on January 25, 2019
A freezing cold wave ravaged 24 provinces of Tunisia in the last two days with 31 roads blocked by snowfall and rains, the National Guard spokesman told local press on Friday.

In the northwest of the country, dozens of roads had been closed until new orders from security units, said Houssem Jbabli.

Heavy snowfall interrupted the traffic in the northwestern provinces of Jendouba, Kef, Beja and Siliana, where authorities decided to close all schools and universities, he added.


Comment: Elsewhere in North Africa: Flooding kills five in snow-hit Algeria


Cloud Lightning

Lightning bolt kills 2 women in Zambia

lightning
© Johannes Plenio
Two women aged 17 and 23 years in Chiengi district have died after they were struck by lightning.

Meanwhile another 57 year old woman in Mwansabombwe District had died after her grass-thatched house in which she was collapsed due to heavy rains.

The first incident involved a 23 year old Jane Mumba and 17 year old Janet Muyamba both of Musinsa village, Chief Puta who were struck by lightning and died on the spot.

The incident occured on Thursday around 13:00 hours at the named village.

Comment: On the same day another bolt claimed the lives of a mother and her baby in Tanzania while in India recently lightning strikes killed 2 people in Uttar Pradesh.


Seismograph

6.2-magnitude earthquake strikes off Fiji island

earthquake
A 6.2-magnitude earthquake hit near the Pacific island nation of Fiji just before 8:00 local time (2:30 am IST) on Sunday, the US Geological Survey said.

Shortly after, the area felt another smaller tremor, which registered 5.2 magnitude.

The earthquakes hit just south of the island between Fiji and Tonga, and were detected at a depth of over 500 km.

So far, there has been no tsunami alert issued by the Pacific Tsunami Warning Center.

Source: Indo-Asian News Service

Tornado2

Fifth tornado in FOUR days strikes Turkey's Antalya, flipping buses and damaging aircraft

Turkey airport tornado
© DHA
The fifth tornado in four days struck Turkey's southern Antalya province Saturday, flipping buses and causing damage to planes and the city's international airport.

After a rough evening, authorities said 12 people had been injured, two buses and a minibus had overturned and two sets of airstairs had toppled over due to high winds.

Speaking to Turkish news channel NTV, Antalya Governor Münir Karaloğlu said that two planes and a police helicopter had suffered significant damage in the storm. He stated that none of the injured were in critical condition.

He said authorities are surveying the damage and doing their best to clean up the airport to avoid further delays.

Meanwhile Environment and Urbanization Minister Murat Kurum said 229 buildings had sustained damage in the powerful storm and tornadoes.

Energy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Dönmez said that the freak weather had also caused major damage to 140 transformer stations in Antalya, adding that power will be restored to most households by the end of the day.


Comment: Three days ago a powerful tornado hit Turkey's Antalya region leaving two dead.


Snowflake

Blizzard paralyses Moscow with 50+ car collisions & dozens of flight delays

Moscow blizzard
© YouTube
Dozens of accidents, including massive pileups blocking major motorways, have virtually brought the Russian capital to a standstill amid an extreme snowstorm that also temporarily disrupted air traffic in Moscow.

The Moscow authorities have deployed over 12,000 pieces of equipment to clear snow from roads and sidewalks across the city. Nevertheless, severe weather conditions in and around Moscow caused massive pileups on Saturday.

On the Simferopol highway, more than 50 vehicles were involved in several collisions, halting traffic in both directions for miles. Videos from the scene shared on social media show the extent of the damage. Luckily, no one died in the accidents, with only three injuries being reported. It took the authorities hours to clear the road before motorists could finally proceed.


Snowflake

Deadly storm slams Italy, Balkan Peninsula, Turkey with heavy rain and snow

10 metres snow drifts near Muş, Turkey on Jan 24th.

10 metres snow drifts near Muş, Turkey on Jan 24th.
At least two people were killed in the the violent storm, that will impact much of the Balkan Peninsula and Turkey into this weekend.

There is the potential that this storm could be distinguished as a medicane, a more tropical-like cyclone moving through the Mediterranean Sea.

Snow is expected to fall from the Dinaric Alps into the interior Balkan Peninsula before expanding northward into eastern Poland, Belarus and western Ukraine.

The heaviest snow fell in the higher elevations of Romania, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia and Herzegovina and Kosovo during the beginning of the storm.

Heavy snow continues to expand across most of Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Montenegro and northeast Albania into Saturday with widespread snowfall of 8-15 cm (3-6 inches). The hardest hit lower elevations can expect up to 30 cm (12 inches) with mountainous locations receiving up to 60 cm (24 inches) of total snowfall by Saturday night.



Attention

Scientist reveals molten rock 'rising five metres a day' at Mount St Helens, Washington

Mount St Helen
© AMAZON
Mt St Helens is rising at 5m a day.
Mount St Helens could erupt again as scientists closely monitor a lava dome rising at five metres a day, a bombshell documentary revealed.

On May 18, 1980, Mount St Helens erupted in the US state of Washington. The blast, which measured 5 on the Volcanic Explosively Index, has been declared as the most disastrous volcanic eruption in modern US history. An huge column rose 80,000 feet into the atmosphere and deposited ash in 11 states, killing at least 57 people and causing more than $1billion (£770million) in damage.

Scientists are now closely watching the volcano to make sure they are prepared in case the same happens again.

Amazon Prime's "Mega Disaster: It's Happened Before, It Will Happen Again" series revealed how a team of volcanists monitor the ticking time bomb.

Rick LaHusen, from the United States Geological Survey (USGS), detailed how they use an instrument known as the "Spider" to keep an eye on volcanic activity.

Cloud Precipitation

Couple dies after flash flood in Bodrum, Turkey

SEARCH
A Turkish couple died after they were trapped in their car as flash floods hit the southwestern town of Bodrum late Jan. 25.

According to local media reports, the 27-year-old driver Çağlar Bilecik and his fiancee, Billur Atik, were in the Akarca area when their car stopped amid intense flooding of a nearby creek.

A passerby, who saw the car while drifting in the water, notified the police.

Rescue teams who arrived soon afterward found in the flooded car the body of Atik, a 23-year-old teacher.

Officials said Atik's fiancee, an electrical technician, was also presumed dead but his body remained missing on Jan. 26 despite search efforts in the area, which was still pounded by a heavy storm.